Bentley to launch $200G luxury car today in Boston

Bentley Motors plans to unveil its $200,000 Continental Flying Spur Speed sedan in Boston today - apparently the first time any automaker has chosen the Hub for a worldwide product launch.

Bentley has previously rolled out vehicles in Paris, Geneva and other posh locales.

But the legendary British automaker chose Boston this time because Bentley plans to move its North American headquarters here from Detroit this fall.

“We really wanted to use our new location as a showcase for the brand,” company spokesman David Reuter said.

Bentley expects some 150 auto journalists from around the world to hit the Hub this month to check out the Flying Spur Speed, along with a 2009 update to the standard, $180,000 Flying Spur.

The product launches will kick off with a formal unveiling today for auto reporters at the Boston Harbor Hotel.

Bentley CEO Franz-Josef Paefgen and engineering chief Ulrich Eichhorn have already flown in from Britain to officiate. In fact, Bentley’s entire six-member board spent the weekend in town checking out launch preparations.

The Flying Spur Speed features Bentley’s most-powerful production engine ever: a 600-horsepower W-12. That’s 12 cylinders arranged in a “W” pattern - essentially two V-6 engines laid side by side, providing enough power to run the Flying Spur Speed at 200 mph.

Inside, the ultraposh sedan features real wood veneers, along with hand-crafted leather upholstery made from at least 11 cow hides per car.

Bentley hasn’t formally set Flying Spur Speed’s price, but Reuter hinted that the sedan will start at around $204,000 when the model hits showrooms this fall.

Of course, that doesn’t include a $3,700 federal “gas-guzzler” tax on the car, which only gets 10 miles per gallon in the city.

Nor does the base price include extras, like optional $16,500 carbon-ceramic brakes or a roughly $7,500 premium stereo that Reuter calls “the world’s best audio system.”

Cambridge-based car expert Craig Carlson said today’s planned rollout appears to represent the first global automotive launch the Hub has ever hosted.

“It’s really exciting,” Carlson said. “People have long thought of Boston as a technology, medical or academic center. Now, they might start thinking about us as a luxury or automotive center, too.”